We’re joined this episode by Dan Hamilton, managing director of Diageo

When Dan took on the role in October 2023 it was a homecoming to Australia after 20 years working abroad, 12 of which were in senior commercial positions at Diageo.

And he was joining the Australian business at a particularly challenging time, with consumers facing significant cost of living pressures, high inflation propelling spirits tax beyond $100 a litre of alcohol, and some of Diageo’s products having lost a bit of relevance with consumers.

So in this special episode of Drinks Adventures - produced in partnership with Diageo Australia - we’ll talk about some of the wins the business has had over the last couple of years, and why Australia has become a bit of a testing ground for new products like Johnnie Walker Black Ruby.

We get Dan’s insights on how different cultures interact with spirits, and what makes the Australian market unique. That of course starts with premix, a category that has only recently been embraced in markets overseas, but was actually pioneered by Diageo’s Bundaberg Rum in the 1940s, somewhat incredibly. 

We talk about the craft spirits boom of recent decades, and what Dan thinks the Australian industry can learn from other markets such as Japan.

And we get a significant update on Diageo’s investment in Starward Whisky following the global company’s decision earlier this year to stop funding the Distil Ventures accelerator.

That’s just some of the territory we cover in this wide-ranging conversation with Dan Hamilton.